Past shows

Austin Invasion: Choctaw Wildfire

This show was on Jun 26th, 2014
| 11 people watched

Bio

Often sounding like a band possessed, Choctaw Wildfire is an intense, driving honky-tonk trio that consists of piano, upright bass, and drums. During a performance, they will rattle you to the core with a heartbreaking ballad and then unleash a New Orleans inspired boogie that leaves the listener longing for the days when juke joints ruled the American landscape. Their music is somehow...
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Often sounding like a band possessed, Choctaw Wildfire is an intense, driving honky-tonk trio that consists of piano, upright bass, and drums. During a performance, they will rattle you to the core with a heartbreaking ballad and then unleash a New Orleans inspired boogie that leaves the listener longing for the days when juke joints ruled the American landscape. Their music is somehow familiar, yet can leave you feeling like an outsider who has just witnessed something very real, painfully beautiful, and ultimately redeeming. Regardless of how their music grabs you, a Choctaw Wildfire performance might be the most genuine thing you've heard in a very long time.

Fronted by pianist and songwriter Charlie Pierce, whose deep riveting voice and dark narrative songs have drawn comparisons to Johnny Cash, Nick Cave, and Tom Waits and a piano pedigree that includes study with internationally renowned Chicago legends Chris Foreman of the Deep Blue Organ Trio (a protégé of Jimmy Smith) and Erwin Helfer (who played with Muddy Waters and performed regularly at Preservation Hall), Choctaw Wildfire represents the culmination of a lifetime of Charlie’s dedication to his musical craft.

Manning drums and percussion for Choctaw Wildfire is Lee Potter, a 20 year veteran of the Austin music scene and longtime spark plug for acts like Jeff Hughes, Cornell Hurd, and Bracken Hale. He has toured with Rosie Flores and Dale Watson, appeared on Austin City Limits (with Watson), and can be found on recordings by the Derailers, Chaparral, Charlie Burton, and the LaSalles among others.